Business corridor between Quebec City Region and Silicon Valley Launched

LAUNCH OF CONEQT PROGRAM ESTABLISHING A GENUINE BUSINESS CORRIDOR BETWEEN THE QUÉBEC CITY REGION AND SILICON VALLEY

Palo Alto, November 19, 2014 – Québec International announced today the launch of the CONEQT program with a view to securing the business corridor between Quebec City and Silicon Valley.

The result of a partnership with Expansion Québec, which has a commercial office in San Mateo in the heart of the Valley, CONEQT provides tech companies in the Quebec City region with market intelligence, development, and support services through dedicated resources for up to 6 months.

The announcement was made at a networking evening organized by the City of Quebec, Québec International, the Quebec Government Office in Los Angeles, and Expansion Québec.

Members of the Quebec and Canadian community in Silicon Valley as well as companies taking part in the third trade mission to California from November 18 to 20 were also invited to the event.

“Building on the success of the previous two missions, CONEQT gives concrete expression to the desire of tech companies from the Quebec City region to expand and consolidate their presence in Silicon Valley. We want to take things one step further in our support for small- and medium-size start-ups,” said Carl Viel, President and Chief Executive Officer of Québec International.

Three companies—Ex Machina, Nemesis Industrial Intelligence, and Saga—are already benefiting from coaching during the current mission, allowing them to take advantage of a program of business meetings and customized follow-up to maximize the impact of their presence in California.

CONEQT costs are shared by participating companies and Québec International thanks to funding from Québec’s Department of the Economy, Innovation, and Exports (MEIE).

In addition to development and support services, the companies can take advantage of a coaching service as well as low-cost temporary office and conference rental space.

CONEQT is an initiative of the Digital Arts and Interactive Entertainment niche of excellence for the Capitale-Nationale region, part of the MEIE’s ACCORD program.

“Our government applauds the efforts of all our partners from Québec whose work enables Québec businesses to take advantage of the newly opened Expansion Québec office in San Mateo. This Québec presence in Silicon Valley will help our exporters improve their standing in California, a massive market,” noted Jacques Daoust, Québec’s Minister of the Economy, Innovation and Exports.

Québec City Mayor Régis Labeaume, who attended the announcement, said “Tech entrepreneurs from Québec City are renowned for their boldness and creativity, and I am very proud of them. For me it is only natural to accompany them in their expansion into new growth markets such as California and to help them translate their ambitions into reality.”

This third trade mission to Silicon Valley headed by the mayor of Québec City will take place from November 18 to 20. The companies making up the delegation are Aerostar R&D Canada, Constellio, Ex Machina, Frima, Groupe Trifide, Mirego, Nemesis Industrial Intelligence, NovAxis Solutions, PetalMD, Saga, and the Québec City Conference.

Québec International
Québec International contributes to the economic development of the Québec City metropolitan region and to its reputation on the international stage. As a regional economic development agency, Québec International fosters business growth, supports key industry clusters, and attracts talent and investment to the region. quebecinternational.ca

Expansion Québec
Expansion Québec was created in 2011 at the initiative of the Québec government and is a non-profit organization whose services complement those offered by Québec government offices abroad. Expansion Québec works to increase Québec’s share of international markets by providing SMEs with customized domiciliation services, office space rentals, and support from a local director. Expansion Québec’s network of offices help facilitate and accelerate the business set-up process while minimizing costs and risks. http://www.expansionquebec.com/

About the ACCORD program
The ACCORD program (Action concertée de coopération régionale de développement) is a Québec government priority action designed to energize the economy in Québec’s regions. ACCORD harnesses regional economic assets and mobilizes regional business communities in the pursuit of excellence in strategic economic sectors. It aims to build productive regional systems that can compete on North American and global markets in every region of the province, by identifying and developing niches of excellence that can one day become the regions’ brand image.